East Wickham is a district in south-east

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

, England, within the

London Borough of Bexley The London Borough of Bexley () is a London borough in south-east London, forming part of Outer London. It has a population of 248,287. The main settlements are Sidcup, Erith, Bexleyheath, Crayford, Welling and Old Bexley. The London Boro ...

. It is situated north of

Welling Welling is an area of South East London, England, in the London Borough of Bexley, west of Bexleyheath, southeast of Woolwich and of Charing Cross. Before the creation of Greater London in 1965, it was in the historical county of Kent. E ...

, east of

Shooter's Hill Shooter's Hill (or Shooters Hill) is a district in South East London within the Royal Borough of Greenwich. It borders the London Borough of Bexley. It lies north of Eltham and south of Woolwich. With a height of , it is the highest point in t ...

, south of Plumstead, south-west of

Abbey Wood Abbey Wood is an area in south east London, England, straddling the border between the Royal Borough of Greenwich and the London Borough of Bexley. It is located east of Charing Cross. Toponymy The area takes its name from Lesnes Abbey Woo ...

and west of West Heath, and east-southeast of Charing Cross. Prior to the creation of Greater London in 1965, East Wickham was in the

administrative county An administrative county was a first-level administrative division in England and Wales from 1888 to 1974, and in Ireland from 1899 until either 1973 (in Northern Ireland) or 2002 (in the Republic of Ireland). They are now abolished, although mos ...

Kent Kent is a county in South East England and one of the home counties. It borders Greater London to the north-west, Surrey to the west and East Sussex to the south-west, and Essex to the north across the estuary of the River Thames; it faces ...

History

The name is thought to be a corruption of the

Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...

'vicus', indicating a Roman settlement along

Watling Street Watling Street is a historic route in England that crosses the River Thames at London and which was used in Classical Antiquity, Late Antiquity, and throughout the Middle Ages. It was used by the ancient Britons and paved as one of the main ...

, with the place name 'Estwycham' first being recorded in 1284.Willey, Russ. ''Chambers London Gazetteer'', p 156 The 'east' was added to differentiate it from

West Wickham West Wickham is an area of South East London, England, mainly within the London Borough of Bromley with some parts lying in the London Borough of Croydon. It lies south of Park Langley and Eden Park, west of Hayes and Coney Hall, north of ...

, situated some distance away to the south-west. The larger settlement of

originally formed part of the ancient manor of East Wickham, which was centred on St Michael's Church,

Upper Wickham Lane The A209 road is a route in southeast London, England. It connects Plumstead in the north with Welling in the south, passing through East Wickham. It is known as ''Wickham Lane'' at the northern end in the Royal Borough of Greenwich and ''Up ...

, built in the 13th century. In the

Domesday Book Domesday Book () – the Middle English spelling of "Doomsday Book" – is a manuscript record of the "Great Survey" of much of England and parts of Wales completed in 1086 by order of King William I, known as William the Conqueror. The manus ...

(1086) East Wickham was included as part of the return for Plumstead and the church was originally a chapel of St Nicholas’ Church in Plumstead, within the

Little and Lesnes Hundred Little and Lesnes was a hundred, a historical land division, in the county of Kent, England. It occupied the northern part of the Lathe of Sutton-at-Hone,An Historical Atlas of Kent, edited by Terence Lawrence & David Killingray (2004) - Maps ...

. It became a civil parish in its own right in 1854 and formed part of

Dartford Rural District Dartford Rural District was a rural district with an area of in the county of Kent, England. In 1971 it had a population of 64,561 and an electorate of 43,911. At dissolution it was the most populous rural district council in Kent, but had o ...

from 1894. It ceased to be a civil parish and was absorbed by the Bexley Urban District on 1 October 1902. The area was largely rural in character until the early 20th century, with large scale house building beginning in the area from 1916 onwards.

Transport

Several Transport for London bus services connect East Wickham with areas including

Eltham Eltham ( ) is a district of southeast London, England, within the Royal Borough of Greenwich. It is east-southeast of Charing Cross, and is identified in the London Plan as one of 35 major centres in Greater London. The three wards of E ...

, Bexleyheath, Plumstead,

Woolwich Woolwich () is a district in southeast London, England, within the Royal Borough of Greenwich. The district's location on the River Thames led to its status as an important naval, military and industrial area; a role that was maintained thr ...

, North Greenwich,

Thamesmead Thamesmead is an area of south-east London, England, straddling the border between the Royal Borough of Greenwich and the London Borough of Bexley. It is located east of Charing Cross, north-east of Woolwich and west of Erith. It mainly con ...

and Dartford. The nearest rail link to the area is

Welling railway station Welling railway station is situated in Welling, part of the London Borough of Bexley, and is served by the Bexleyheath Line, from . The station was opened with the line on 1 May 1895. The station is located in Station Road, just off Bellegrove ...

Notable residents

Kate Bush Catherine Bush (born 30 July 1958) is an English singer, songwriter, record producer and dancer. In 1978, at the age of 19, she topped the UK Singles Chart for four weeks with her debut single " Wuthering Heights", becoming the first female ...

, singer-songwriter.

References

{{Authority control Areas of London Districts of the London Borough of Bexley Former civil parishes in the London Borough of Bexley